It is good to see VPP style linkages appearing that (hopefully) are free of Santa Cruz patent claims. The bike seems to achieve good results, too, as Josep and Antonio say.

From a technical point of view the Diamondback variation on the VPP idea has drifted a long way from the SC original. It follows more in the footsteps of Corratec than SC and manages to blend in a 'switch' analogous with that found on the first Yeti Switch but with the links rotating the other way round i.e. classic VPP + switch.

From the moment the Corratec Inside Link appeared its promise was apparent. Initially, Inside Link was only available in a short travel form. Years ago, out of curiosity, I tinkered in Linkage to see whether that promise could be realised for a long travel bike. I concluded that Inside Link had nothing to offer. Looking at this well realised DiamondBack it is apparent that interesting ideas need to be given a bit of time before making any final judgements on them. Maybe the DiamondBack won't quite be up to the level of SC or Yeti but it looks good and it will be a less expensive alternative.

I looked into this interesting linkage, that DiamondBack calls "Level Link", a bit more. It does indeed have a 'switch' as I suggested, but it happens before the SAG point so it plays a minimal role in the function of the suspension.

This does not diminish the achievement of the linkage designers though. Indeed, looking at the AS and AR curves alone the DiamondBack appears to have points of comparability with horst-link bikes in the Lapierre OST (in its earlier form), Alutech and Bird MTB mold. Only, the dual short links of the DiamondBack, mean that the dynamic geometry of rear suspension is more heavily manipulated and allows more scope to reduce pedal kickback deeper in travel in a way that is unachievable by the other mentioned bikes - the falling AS curve late in travel is a strong indicator of this.

And initial impressions are this linkage is better than the mentioned horst-links in all key respects! The performance characteristics that are achievable with the Level Link brings into question whether the swing-link (the upper link with the characteristic near vertical VPP orientation at rest and counter-clockwise rotation, viewed from the drive side of the bike, when actuated by suspension compressions) based horst-links serve any useful purpose any more.

In my view, Lapierre and the others ought to be preparing to replace their current linkages with something more like the classic SC style VPP linkage or perhaps something similar to DiamondBack's Level Link. And as VPP (supposedly) is no longer patent encumbered that should now be possible.

I also thought that Corratec wouldn't be able to make a long travel version of their system, but they did it and it's not that bad. The elastomer damper looks really weird even if it works, but it's a bike that still has room for improvement.

Lapierre also has a lot of room of improvement. A few years ago they were very popular in Spain. I remember going out and always crossing with one or two, but right now you look at the catalogue and it's a mess, they really need a good XC-Trail bike and then keep working on the Zesty and Spicy...

Even with the expiry of the Santa Cruz VPP patents there is still unease as new and more dubious patents begin to rear their ugly heads. Sadly, the "Level Link" on the Diamondback bikes is one of these patented designs. Indeed the designer of the linkage is one Luther Beale who already has form for sniffing around at the margins of existing designs (Beale was one of the two engineers at Sotto Design who were responsible for the original Yeti Switch but has since formed his own suspension design consultancy) for any bits of linkage tech that might still be patentable.

What fun it will be to see Corratec and Diamondback square off in court over what by now ought to be unencumbered linkage tech. Or maybe both of them could gang up on Chemical Bikes for assuming the expiry of VPP meant you could design linkages in that design space without fear of legal reprisal. Maybe nothing at all will happen which would amount to a tacit acknowledgement that whatever VPP-like patents a company may formally possess, with the expiry of the Santa Cruz patents, they are now worthless. That would be the best result.

I think the only point of this new pattents is to make sure that the designer gets paid by the bike company, but they are to weak to make claims and start a legal war with other companies... Anyway, he is the man behind all the new Transitions, so he is doing a pretty good job.

I hope you're right about that. And, certainly Beale, as a designer, is first rate.

Actually, the other fellow at Sotto, David Earle, was very capable, too. More recently he seems to have played a part in the Praxis Works story, as owner, I believe. And, interestingly, Alchemy Bikes say that the new dual-linkage suspension featured on the Arktos full suspension bike is "licensed exclusively from David Earle." The Arktos looks a lot like the original Yeti Switch enduro bike, although the Alchemy site suggests the LR curve is new.